Food Industry This Week – New Product Offering & Expansion Plans

Food Industry This Week – New Product Offering & Expansion Plans

Snapshots of Food Industry News

Mahindra and Mahindra enter Dairy Market

Mahindra and Mahindra, the auto-aerospace conglomerate has added milk to their agricultural division. Mahindra already sells pulses, fruits and oilseeds and with the launch of milk in Indore, Madhya Pradesh they have expanded their portfolio which will soon include other dairy products. The milk will be sold under the Saboro brand in Indore first and later will expand to other cities like Bhopal. The Saboro milk is available in four variants which sell at the price range of Rs.35-50 a litre. The company has carried out research to ascertain customer requirements and they feel that it will be able to fulfil the customer requirement of cream and nutrition in the milk. Their milk will be fortified with Vitamin A and D.

Mahindra and Mahindra agricultural division was launched in 2015 but they have already seen the sale of pulses and oilseeds grow by 50 percent. In fruits section Mahindra has become one of the largest exporters of grapes with a turnover of Rs.900crore. The company will be working directly with farmers in 70 villages around Indore. They have put in place technically sound milk collection chain but the milk will be processed in Indore. They will process 10,000 litres of milk a day to begin with and then hope to take it to 50,000litres. India’s 4 lakh crore dairy market is mainly made up of unbranded milk and dairy segment and for brands to enter the segment will see a new high in this industry.

Patanjali targeting 7,000-crore annual turnover by end of 2017

Currently, Patanjali Ayurved Ltd has a turnover of about Rs.4,500crore and this is inching towards the targeted Rs.5000crore for this fiscal. If current monthly sales rise to about Rs.600crore from the present 550crore then the company will definitely have an annual turnover of Rs.7, 000crore by 2017. The company feels that they are moving in line with the target and there is no doubt that they will become a leading FMCG in the near future. Advertising has caught the eye and new product launches have been successful so Patanjali is on a roll.

Patanjali products include medicines, food, personal care and groceries. In a new move they have raised a debt of Rs.320crore which they will use for their expansion plans. Some of the debt will also be used for research and development of new products. The company has grown so swiftly that it has already closed the gap with Dabur, Marico and even Godrej Consumer. In business circles the predictions say that Patanjali sales would soon become as big as ITC’s non-tobacco FMCG sales if the turnover reaches Rs.10, 000crore.

Domino’s Pizza’s e-catering services for Indian Railways to double

Domino’s Pizza is to double their e-catering services for the Indian Railways by expanding their delivery parameters. Presently Domino’s delivers food at 60 stations but a positive response from passengers has resulted in expansion for their delivery parameters to130 stations. Passengers want hygienic, fresh and quality foods and since IRCTC has received good feedback there will be an increase in Domino’s footprint for railways.

Indian Railways and Domino’s franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks had tied up last year for e-catering service named ‘food on track’. Domino’s has delivered more than a thousand pizzas to passengers across all tiers of Indian cities. Seeing the demand for quality products Jubilant is likely to also expand their menu. Jubilant sees this partnership as having immense scope for growth and are geared for the increase in demand as the summer vacations are to begin soon.

Kerala to soon produce ‘organic milk’

Seeing an increase in demand for ‘organic’ produce the Kerala Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd is all set to provide nutritious and high quality ‘organic milk.’ The milk co-operative has tied up with Netherlands and will provide milk from animals that have not been given synthetic feeds or antibiotics. The organic milk will be produced by rearing cattle in a natural environment and the current agricultural practices will be changed. Cattle will be fed only natural fodder and grass, which has not been subjected to pesticides or insecticides for one and a half years before they can provide ‘organic milk.’

Five milk societies in Mullankoli in Wayanad have been selected for implementing the project and the farmers have been given directions accordingly. Once the Dutch government gives their approval the scheme will get underway. An MoU is likely to be signed soon with MILMA, which manages six societies in the high northern regions of Malabar. MILMA has also joined hands with Solidaridad a recognised NGO form the Netherlands and Transdisciplinary University Bengaluru which encourages the promotion of traditional food, treatment and culture .The milk will be certified by the Aluva based Indocert . Local women have been trained in ethnic veterinary treatment and they will take care of the cattle under this scheme.

Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti: Food processing industry must use solar energy

Speaking as an event organised by Assocham, Minister of State for Food Processing, Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, said that the food processing industry should use solar energy for their manufacturing processes. She said that the growth of the food industry is essential for the growth of farmers and encourages rural development. Since solar energy is environmentally friendly the food processing industry should maximise use in their operations. This will also help to promote renewable energy in rural areas.

According to the National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC) India’s total capacity of power generation is approximately 2.88 lakh Megawatt, out of which only 15 percent is from renewable sources and maximum from thermal power. So the focus must shift to energy sources that are environmentally, economically and socially more sustainable. Development must therefore go hand in hand with conservation of nature and natural resources.